Indian sportswomen beat Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni in the "most searched sportsperson" category

The year 2016 has seen a sea of change in terms of interest in sports apart from Cricket. The behemoth of the sporting scene in India saw stiff competition from famous sportspersons from other sports category, the reason mainly being the Rio Olympics 2016. The Olympics drew a huge attention of the public and was one of the most followed events in India this.

Also, the outstanding achievements of less famous athletes in the country also prompted people to go to the web and search them. This has led to some surprising changes in the top newsmakers category which seen completely new names like Sakshi Malik and Dipa Karmakar entering the most–searched list on the web.

“The list of top newsmakers is usually ruled by politicians and Bollywood stars but in 2016, it saw the entry of P.V. Sindhu, Sakshi Malik, Dipa Karmakar and wrestler Vinesh Phogat,” Yahoo said in a statement.

These sportswomen also pipped cricketers in the “most searched sportsperson” category, with Sindhu and Karmakar at number one and two spots, respectively. Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli were the only cricketers who made it to the top 10 list.

However, Indians’ all-consuming obsession with cricket continued with ‘IPL 2016’ becoming the most searched news-y term, followed by Rio Olympics. Prime Minister Narendra Modi again emerged as the “most searched politician”, followed by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

“The Unnamed Soldier” who remained perennially at the forefront of national consciousness emerged as the “personality of the year”.

“From thwarting a terrorist infiltration into the Pathankot Air Force Station to facing September’s militant attack in Uri that led to a precise and surgical retaliation from India, or being in the midst of the controversy surrounding the One Rank-One Pension scheme, the soldier was in the news all year long,” Yahoo said.